A lower price tag but Beach Road Restaurant site finally sells

When Palm Beach’s famed Beach Road Restaurant went on the market in 2007, it carried a $770,000 price tag.

The restaurant has finally sold, six years and one global financial crisis later, for a figure believed to be south of $100,000.

The team from Bondi Pavilion’s The Bucket List has snapped up the venue, hoping to transplant a bit of Bondi fun to the northern playground for Sydney’s wealthy.

Bucket List co-owner Andy Ruwald confirmed they take possession of the site on September 20, reopening a yet-to-be-named restaurant in late November, following a makeover.

Ruwald says the garden will be a focus, with a new, loungy feel. Outgoing owner Tom Rutherford says Palm Beach has changed dramatically during the sale period that was heading for a longer run than Home and Away.

‘‘When I opened here nearly 10 years ago, there were only a couple of places. Now there are 10,’’ he says.

‘‘When the GFC came, half of Palm Beach was for sale.’’

Rutherford managed to recalibrate Beach Road, which had been at the centre of controversy under previous owners, including a stoush over a diner who didn’t pay her bill after being rushed to hospital when one of the restaurant’s umbrellas blew over and hit her.

Ruwald is confident of success. ‘‘If it doesn’t work, we can turn it into a holiday house,’’ he jokes.